Very few people lived in the area until local attorney Walter Travers created a plan to develop a community around Lake Clarke and purchased 250 acres (100 ha) of land for $10,000 in the late 1940s.

With rumors spreading that West Palm Beach intended to annex the community, residents voted by a wide margin to support the incorporation of Lake Clarke Shores as a town on April 10, 1956, which the Florida Legislature officially approved in July 1, 1957.

The town is primarily a bedroom community, with most of its businesses and other commercial buildings located along Forest Hill Boulevard (State Road 882).

He also purchased 5 acres (2.0 ha) of land in West Palm Beach near where Hillcrest Cemetery and Parker Avenue stand today.

In 1946, Patsy Renolds built a house where Antigua Road stands today and is the oldest home in Lake Clarke Shores.

By the late 1940s, local attorney Walter Travers visited the area and bought the lakeshore properties from their respective owners.

However, after meeting with the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Fund in Tallahassee, the board offered Travers the land for $300 per acre.

Travers was the only bidder and obtained 250 acres (100 ha) of land on the northwest periphery of the lake for $10,000, which a friend loaned to him.

After obtaining $5,000 for an unrelated lawsuit settlement, Travers invested that money into his project to transform the area into a waterfront community and brought in dredging equipment in 1949.

[3] Rumors spread that West Palm Beach planned to annex the area, prompting 60 people to form the Lake Clarke Property Owners’ Association in 1955.

After reaching consensus on the name Lake Clarke Shores, residents met there on April 10, 1956, to decide on incorporation.

The Florida Legislature approved the citizens vote to incorporate on July 1, 1957, when the town was granted the State Charter.

[1][3] Development continued rapidly after Forest Hill Community High School opened just across the West Palm Beach Canal from Lake Clark Shores in 1958.

[8] However, the town council began passing ordinances later in the 1960s to allow commercial properties along Forest Hill Boulevard.

The first commercial building, a gas station, opened at the corner of Forest Hill Boulevard and Florida Mango Road in June 1967.

[17] The town of Lake Clarke Shores includes five parks and recreational areas:[18] Lake Clarke Shores is also located near Dreher Park, the Palm Beach Zoo, the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium,[19] and the West Palm Beach Golf Course.

The town at the state level is part of the 87th district of the Florida House of Representatives, which covers a large portion of east-central Palm Beach County.

[29] Lake Clarke Shores is located near the main branch of the Palm Beach County Library System.

[32][33] Lake Clarke Shores is part of the West Palm Beach–Fort Pierce television market, ranked as the 38th largest in the United States by Nielsen Media Research.

[34] The market is served by stations affiliated with major American networks including WPTV-TV/5 (NBC), WPEC/12 (CBS), WPBF/25 (ABC), WFLX/29 (FOX), WTVX/34 (CW), WXEL-TV/42 (PBS), WTCN-CD/43 (MYTV),[35] WWHB-CD/48 (Azteca),[36] WHDT/59 (Court TV),[35] WFGC/61 (CTN),[36] WPXP-TV/67 (ION),[35] as well as local channel WBWP-LD/57 (Ind.).

[39] Palm Tran Route 46, which runs eastward and westward, has a few stops along Forest Hill Boulevard in Lake Clarke Shores and just outside the town limits.

[42] The town of Lake Clarke Shores has operated a police department with full-time paid staff since November 1970, replacing its former volunteer force.

[3] The department employs a total of 37 people, with 11 full-time members, including Police Chief Wes Smith III.

[43] Although there is no longer a volunteer staff,[3] the department continues to operate the Lake Clarke Shores Police Department's Citizen Observer Patrol Program, with volunteers annually spending an average of over 1,000 hours patrolling the streets and more than 200 hours assisting with administrative staff.